Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, the retired pilot who successfully landed a commercial airliner filled with passengers on the Hudson River after the plane lost thrust in both engines, announced Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
“It is early stage. For now, this means a name may not come easily to me, I forget a story I have recently told, or I don’t sleep as well, but I am in the beginning of this long journey,” Sullenberger, 75, said in a statement on his website.
Sullenberger said he hopes that by sharing the news of his diagnosis, “other families living in the shadows with this disease will feel they too can step forward.”
“Though it may impact my memory of the past, this diagnosis will not prevent me from looking forward to and appreciating our future,” Sullenberger said. “I will navigate this chapter with my wonderful family by my side.”
Sullenberger earned international acclaim after he managed to safely land US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River on Jan. 15, 2009, after both engines got knocked out by a collision with birds. All 155 people aboard survived.
The water landing came to be known as the “Miracle on the Hudson.” Clint Eastwood dramatized Sullenberger’s heroic exploits in the 2016 film “Sully,” starring Tom Hanks in the title role.
Sullenberger retired in March 2010 after three decades as a professional pilot. In recent years, Sullenberger established himself as a prominent advocate for aviation safety.
“Over the years, when people would ask about the successful outcome of Flight 1549, I would say that ‘courage can be contagious,’ and on that day it helped everyone band together to get everyone off that airplane successfully,” Sullenberger said in Tuesday’s statement.
“Now we need that courage to battle this disease. I am now part of a larger community with many of you, and we will be courageous together,” he added.
